Artificial Love
by Banira
Summary: She was only her replacement. As was he was his. They were not perfect; everything about them was too extreme compared to the original. Maybe they could start anew, and no longer be the replacements, but just be themselves. Saika SaiKarin


**Disclaimer: Naruto and all the characters rightfully belong to Masashi Kishimoto**

**  
This I suppose can be considered the companion fic to 'Replacement' Apparently there's no SaiKarin on here so I decided to contribute because I had an odd thought for this one day. I am officially dubbing it Saika. Just when everyone thought Banira couldn't get any weirder pairings...Anywho enjoy!**

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She was only her replacement. As was he was his. They were not perfect; everything about them was too extreme compared to the original. Therefore, that made them insufficient, not good enough.

Her hair was too dark, not the delicate pink her team leader remembered. And it wasn't short; it was only jagged. Though it almost represented the original girl's development. One side was long and neat, like the original's before she became strong. Then there was the jagged side, a reminder of how the original's was brutally hacked off. The copy was so wrong in other ways as well. Her eyes were hidden behind glasses and a fiery red color to match her hair. Where as they were supposed to be open, sparkling emeralds filled with various emotions. She squealed like the favored girl did--how the favored girl _used_ to. Even so, she didn't have genuine care and gentle words.

Then there was him. His hair didn't have the spikes like it was supposed to. His skin was pale, but too void of color to match the previous. He was emotionless, much like the original boy, but he was _too_ emotionless. He could not understand his teammates' motives whatsoever. This replacement was inadequate too.

So when the original boy and the original girl were reunited, there was no need to have replacements. They were then abandoned, but not alone. Remaining were the two, both unwanted, but together alone.

Their crude personality's clashed excessively. The fiery fake was constantly frustrated with his bluntness. Often it would result in her raging out of the room, leaving behind a confused too-pale man wondering what he did. Perhaps it wasn't a good idea to say her hair reminded him of a porcupine.

It wasn't too long after that news of the originals' relationship hit. That was the first time he had seen her cry. She broke down in sobs, collapsing on him despite their conflicts. Awkwardly, if not completely oblivious to what he was supposed to do, he held her while listening to her half-choked words. It was about an hour later she calmed down and the sobs turned to soft hiccups.

Quietly, she spoke, eyes cast downward. She revealed to him something she had pondered on for quite some time. Did she really like the original boy? Could it be that it was only because she was _supposed_ to? To her it didn't seem fair; they had only been used, to the point they had to make the decisions of the original's to seem alike.

He listened to all of this silently while letting her words sink in. At the moment she let it slip she wasn't too fond of the raven-haired avenger as much as she forced herself to believe, he said something odd. If the originals got together, and they were their copies, were they supposed to do the same? As if they were in a parallel universe, yet the events stayed the same.

He felt an odd emotion he hadn't learned yet when he saw her face light up red. Maybe, he thought idly, she didn't hate him as much as she had wanted to believe, much like her false assumption towards the original boy. What he did know was this new feeling felt good, he didn't know why but it didn't seem to matter if he did.

Mumbling a string of incoherent curses, she laid her head on his chest while loosely gripping his forearm. He wasn't exactly sure what to do, once again, but he thought he was supposed to put his arms around her and hold her tightly, so that's what he did. That's what his books said to do anyways.

The girl seemed to like this, vaguely he thanked that she did, as there was no yelling this time. What came next was just as sudden. As she pressed her full lips to his, drunk off emotions and delirious, instinct took over and he immediately knew what to do, though just as delusional as her.

After a few minutes of passion, they broke apart flushed. For a second she looked up with another unknown emotion in her ruby eyes. Though it only lasted a second as she pushed away and yelled at him once again. This time when she stormed out, an undeniable blush covered her face.

The following months were different, not awkward, but just different from where they originally stood. She seemed to yell at him less, and he would find her staring at him on many occasions. The odd feeling also grew stronger, and as it did, he still did not know what it was. Overall they were just closer. He enjoyed those peaceful, yet rare, silent moments they shared.

When he finally asked her what that odd feeling meant, she only paused in thought. After a moment, she answered, her voice softer and slightly whimsical, as if she were about to tell a secret wish. It means you care for someone, she had said, you have feelings for them. He noticed her inching closer. Oddly enough, he didn't mind.

So perhaps though they were originally replacements for someone else's story, they could become their own. They could be their own roles with their own thoughts in a new story. Where it was okay to feel that odd emotion towards the other. They could start anew, and no longer be the replacements of Sakura and Sasuke, but just be Karin and Sai.

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** Special thanks to HikariAdams for betaing it! If you have not read her stories I suggest you do. Especially if you're a fan of SasuHanabi, and if you're not go read her stories and be converted! **


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